The SPVM Says an Operation Across Montreal, Laval, Rosemère and Longueuil Dismantled a Structured Criminal Network Suspected of Most of the Jewellery-Store Robberies in the Montreal Agglomeration, With Fourteen People Arrested and $3.9 Million in Jewellery, Cash and Other Evidence Seized (November 12, 2026)

The Service de police de la Ville de Montréal says an operation carried out on November 11 dismantled a structured criminal network it suspects was responsible for most of the robberies committed at jewellery stores in the Montreal agglomeration over recent months. Fourteen people were arrested, eight adults and six minors, twelve men and two women, the force says. About ten searches in Montreal, Laval, Rosemère and Longueuil produced the seizure of $3.9 million in jewellery, cash and other pieces of evidence, according to the SPVM. Five adult suspects appeared at the Montreal courthouse on the morning of November 12, and the six minors appeared the same morning before the Youth Division of the Court of Québec; the force announced the operation in a release that day.

Legal status: Arrested; first court appearances held. Five adult suspects appeared at the Montreal courthouse on the morning of November 12 and, the SPVM says, face counts including robbery and laundering proceeds of crime; three of the five were released pending the continuation of proceedings. Six minors appeared the same morning before the Youth Division of the Court of Québec to face counts of robbery. None of the allegations has been tested in court and everyone arrested is presumed innocent.

What the Operation Produced

The SPVM says the investigation grew out of a series of robberies that shared a similar method and that were committed both on Montreal territory and in several municipalities of the wider metropolitan region, naming Laval, Longueuil, Saint-Jean-sur-Richelieu and Rosemère. The force says the first event it has recorded in the file goes back to February 2026, and that investigators noted a marked increase in this type of offence beginning in June.

Several of the fourteen people arrested are suspected by the force of having acted as organisers and coordinators of the robberies. The force credits the work to several of its specialised units, naming the Unité des produits de la criminalité, the Groupes projet, the Équipe multisectorielle dédiée aux armes à feu (EMAF), and its regional investigation teams. It says the searches were carried out with the collaboration of police partners including the Service de police de l’agglomération de Longueuil and the Service de police de Laval.

The Five Adults Who Appeared in Montreal

Five suspects appeared at the Montreal courthouse on the morning of November 12 and, the SPVM says, face counts including robbery and laundering proceeds of crime. The SPVM says three of the suspects were released pending the continuation of judicial proceedings. The force lists the five in alphabetical order: Jason Clerveaux, 21; Marly Cliff Delcy, 31; Roldy Fénélon-Jean, 19; Nerrissa Gilda Louis, 23; and Sheikha Safa, 20.

The Six Young People, and How the SPVM Says They Were Recruited

Six suspects who are minors, aged between 14 and 17, appeared the same morning before the Youth Division of the Court of Québec to face counts of robbery. The SPVM says their identities cannot be disclosed because of their age, and they are not named here.

The force says its investigation brought to light a structured criminal network behind several of the events, and that the group recruited young people to carry out the robberies, mainly through a digital platform, while other individuals handled the planning and coordination. The SPVM says the fight against the criminal exploitation of young people remains an absolute priority for the force, and that it is working in prevention and investigation to protect young people from the networks that use them. Noovo Info reports that SPVM commander Iad Hanna said the thieves were aged between 13 and 15, which he called very young, and that people with access to a gold resale market were among those arrested.

The Pattern Behind the File

The SPVM says 55 robberies targeting jewellery stores have been counted on Montreal territory since the start of 2026. Of those, it says 34 were committed using the method it calls smash-and-grab, which it describes as breaking display windows with hammers in order to seize valuable jewellery quickly before fleeing. Since the first arrests in the file on September 11, 2026, the force says these cases have led to the arrest of about 40 individuals and to 12 searches. The SPVM says the investigation falls under projet Unis, which it describes as a concerted initiative of Quebec police forces aimed at actively countering acts of criminality and violence against merchants.

Everyone arrested in this operation is presumed innocent, and none of the allegations has been tested in court. The allegations are those of the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal, as published in its release of November 12, 2026 and reported by Noovo Info. The six suspects who are minors cannot be identified because of their age.